VIDEO: CBA shows it will remain a force, routs CCHS

The CBA shooting guard, starting in his first varsity game, wanted to show that the Brothers backcourt could still dominate Big 10 competition despite losing their top three scorers from last season.

Owens made his point, scoring a game-high 18 points to lead CBA in a 90-51 victory over Catholic Central in the season opener.

"We stepped up big here," Owens said. "Coach prepared us; he made us ready to win this game. We just played our game and came out with confidence."

The Brothers came out quick after the opening tip-off, going a 12-to-1 point run before the mid-way point of the first quarter.

Using its speed to set the pace, CBA was able to fall into an offensive rhythm throughout the entire game, while the Crusaders were continuously forced to play catchup.

"I was very proud with how some of the kids came into the game," CBA coach Dave Doemel said. "I know we have some talented kids, but the question was how they meshed together. They were looking for each other here and that was exactly what we wanted."

Although Catholic Central returned most of their starting lineup from last season for Friday night's game, the Crusaders could get never get their footing, sprinting up and down the court without ever really getting the chance to run a set play.

Part of the problem was the absence of junior guard Jiriem Tedder who, as of Thursday, was expected to be part of Catholic Central's starting lineup.

The other, and possibly bigger, part of the problem was simply that the Crusaders were too anxious going into the Big 10 matchup.

"We were just too revved up," Catholic Central coach Chuck Mack said. "You can't get down like that because then everybody is playing differently."

With the Brothers setting the pace of the game at will, Catholic Central was not only playing catchup but they were doing it out of position.

The CBA defense rarely let the Crusaders earn a second chance on offense, led by junior power forward Greg Stire who finished the game with a game-high eight rebounds.

"I was really trying to seal from the inside," Stire, who also chipped in 17 points on offense, said. "That way when the shot went up, I was already on the inside."

By the final whistle, CBA had out-rebounded Catholic Central 56 to 42, giving the Brothers plenty of extra chances on offense while still shutting down the Crusaders.

As the game progressed, the Crusaders were able to take a bit of a breath and fall into their original gameplan, but it was simply too little, far too late.

"We got to a point where we were calming down and being aggressive towards the basket," Mack said. "We could make some things happen."

For CBA, the reigning Section II Class AA champions, Friday night's victory was a bit of a statement, a chance to show that even with a handful of new faces, they could still contend in league play.

On the other hand, for the Crusaders, Friday night's loss was a disappointment, adding to a list of things they're still hoping to improve upon.

"Quite frankly it's hard," Mack said. "I told the kids, we have about 30 different things to work on. But they're all small things and we'll work on all of them."